Many
thousands of people around the world will be in mourning today,
they will be feeling lost and wondering why. No it has nothing
to do with wars or famines or anything like that, it has to do
with a Buffalo dying.

10
years ago a small buffalo was born, she was a sign to Native Americans
and those who follow the red road worldwide, she was a sign of
hope for the world, she was a sign that at last we may have peace
on earth. She was Miracle the White Buffalo. She was born in Wisconsin,
(USA) to a pair of ordinary brown buffalo. There had been a prophesy
that a white buffalo would be born that would herald the return
of the White Buffalo Calf Woman, the entity who bought the sacred
red Chanupa (Pipe) to the Lakota People. The White Buffalo Calf
Woman had promised that she would return one day, and it was thought
that this tiny white Buffalo was this promise fulfilled. The prophesy
said that the father of this buffalo would die of natural causes
within a couple of months of the birth, that way no other calf
could be born from these parents. True to the prophesy the father,
Marvin, did die of natural causes about a month after Miracle
was born.

As
Miracle grew her color changed she went from white to yellow to
red to black and then to brown, at that point people said that
she had started to go back to white again, but because the world
wasn't ready for her she stayed brown. The White Buffalo Calf
Woman had changed color as she left the Lakota people, first she
turned into a buffalo and then she lay down turned over and over
and changed into all of the same colors that Miracle did, the
colors of mankind, as she turned, but she stayed white. Yet another
prophesy fulfilled. It was said that when MIracle changed back
to white again something big would happen on the Earth, many said
it would be Peace, and all looked forward to that. I felt that
the world was not ready for peace though and thought that when
she got old she would turn grey and that would be when it would
happen, there were years to go until then though, or so I thought.

The
last time I saw Miracle I was with Chuck Derby, his son and daughter
in law, and our two grand-daughters, Jenny and Dabbie. We did
a pipe ceremony by the side of her run where she was laying. As
soon as she smelled the sage burning she looked over to us and
stood to face us and it was as if she joined us in the ceremony.
When we finished she lay down again and looked back to where she
was looking before. Her eyes held so much wisdom, it was as if
she looked straight into your heart and soul. (My friend Elizabeth
was touched so much by Miracle the first time we saw her, she
looked into Elizabeths eyes and changed her life. I will always
remember the way she talked about her meeting with Miracle on
the way home to Pipestone that day.) Before we left that day in
2002 the grandfather of the family that took care of Miracle gave
my grand-daughter some of Miracles fur as she was feeling ill.
She still has that fur tucked away in a special sacred place.
It will be even more precious after the news we heard today.

Last Sunday, September 19th 2004, just 10 years and one month
after she was born, Miracle the beautiful White Buffalo, the symbol
of peace, died. She has left us. That is so sad to know that the
hopes that were held by so many people because of this small magical
animal have died as well. The world will never be the same.

We can ask why did she move on, I have my own theories, one is
that we as a world were not ready for such a peace symbol. We
are not good enough to have her in our lives. War is uppermost
in peoples makeup still, war between nations, war within families,
war between friends, war between partners, it is all negative
energy that has the same impact; sadness, hatred, fear, regret,
but no one wants to stop, no one wants to say 'I forgive you'.
We from all of our worldwide religions are not big enough to accept
differences, to accept our neighbours, to accept other religions,
even to accept others point of view. We always want to say we
are the best and we are the ones who know the right way and I
am right and you are wrong. While this happens there will never
be peace in the world.

Another reason I feel that Miracle has left us is because of the
rift within Indian Country, the problems happening with the Chanupa,
the quarries, with people turning away from their traditions and
with the exclusivity of many of the Indiginous people of America
towards non indiginous people when it comes to ceremony, learning
and the Chanupa. These people feel that they should be the ones
to lay down the law as who can be included in a prayer ceremony,
or who has a Chanupa and who shouldn't. While this is happening
they are basically saying that they are above the Creator. I have
always felt that if the Creator accepts people of any culture
joining in prayer ceremonies, then surely that is what counts.
As long as the person joining in shows respect of the prayers,
and the people and above all the Chanupa then that is what matters.

I
wonder if because of all this turmoil in Indian Country right
now about the ceremonies and the Chanupa, then Miracle and the
Creator said, 'Enough. These people do not deserve this symbol
of peace, of hope and of tradition.'

Miracle
was born on a farm that was owned by a non-indiginous family,
these people knew nothing about the native cultures, but they
learned and they hosted people from all over the world over the
years, they were friendly, and respectful and above all loved
Miracle. If the Creator can put such a high Native symbol in the
home of a non native family, then why can't these people who say
non-natives cannot do ceremony accept that it is the Creator's
will for us to join together in prayer if we are pulled to do
so, Red, yellow, black, brown and white, we all bleed red, we
all cry salty tears, and we all feel a higher power within our
souls. Who can say that that higher power cannot be for us because
we are the wrong skin color? I certainly can't........ can you?

I did a Pipe ceremony for Miracle on October 2nd at 11:07p.m.
(GMT) and many people joined in with me from all over the world
our prayers mingled with each other and hopefully we felt better
in ourselves for doing them, and Miracle and the Creator saw that
some of us cared about this great loss.

Our
world will miss Miracle, I know I shall, she was very special
to me.